Armored Core (video game)
| director = Toshifumi Nabeshima | producer = Yasuyoshi Karasawa | designer = | writer = | programmer = Hiroyuki Arai Masayuki Saito | artist = | composer = Basil Poledouris | series = Armored Core | platforms = PlayStation | released = | genre = Third-person shooter | modes = Single player, multiplayer }} is a third-person shooter mecha video game developed by FromSoftware and released in 1997. The game is the first in the ''Armored Core series. It was re-released in 2007 on PlayStation Network. Plot The vast majority of Earth's population is wiped out by a cataclysmic war known as the "Great Destruction." The harsh conditions that result force the few remaining survivors to live underground for fifty years, during which time corporations come to power. The two largest corporations, Chrome and Murakumo Millennium, constantly battle each other for supremacy, causing significant strife among the populace. However, the competition provides endless opportunities for the Ravens, mercenaries who exist independently of the corporations. The player pilots an armored core (AC), which is a mecha robot. Gameplay The game starts with the player engaging in a test to become part of the "Raven's Nest". It simply involves destroying two Muscle Tracers (MTs), before being destroyed oneself. Upon passing this test, the player receives mission requests from corporations and other groups. Missions generally pay higher as difficulty increases, and payments can range from money to prototype AC parts. Depending on which missions are chosen, the missions available to the player on later stages differ. The player can also read mail from various senders, and observe their rankings, which are based on mission success rates. The player is responsible for purchasing their weapons and AC parts, and must use the money they earn from missions to that end. There is no way to replenish ammunition or armor during missions, so the cost of resupplying ammunition and repairing AC units is automatically deducted from the player's payment at the end of each mission. If a mission is failed, or if the payment is a prototype AC part, the cost of repairs and ammunition is deducted from the total amount of money the player has accumulated. The parts, particularly weapons, in the game and its two expansions are the most powerful in the series. For example, the original KARASAWA fires faster than most AST Rifles and Pulse Rifles in later games. The FINGER has 3000 ammo, and the Large Missile comes in two styles, one that flies like a regular missile (discontinued after Master of Arena), and the traditional slow (though, roughly twice as fast as later versions, such as those in Last Raven) version. The slow version has ten missiles as opposed to the four of later versions, and is the longest range missile of this generation. The game has a two-player versus mode using a split screen. Development The robot designs were created by renowned mecha designer Shōji Kawamori. Reception | Allgame = | CVG = | Edge = 7/10 | EGM = 8.25/10 | Fam = 28/40 | GI = 8.25/10 | GameRev = B+ | GSpot = 8.3/10 | IGN = 8/10 | NGen = | OPM = }} The game received "favorable" reviews according to the review aggregation website GameRankings. In Japan, Famitsu gave it a score of 28 out of 40. Next Generation reviewed the PlayStation version of the game, rating it four stars out of five, and stated that "Armored Core isn't perfect: The graphics, while crisp, do lean a little to the bland side, and turning around can be sluggish. Still, the strength and depth of the gameplay are enough to make Armored Core a winner." References External links * Category:1997 video games Category:Armored Core Category:Corporate warfare in fiction Category:Video games about mecha Category:Multiplayer and single-player video games Category:PlayStation (console) games Category:PlayStation Network games Category:Third-person shooters Category:Video games developed in Japan Category:Video games scored by Basil Poledouris Category:Video games scored by Richard Harvey Category:Video games scored by Fiachra Trench